Electric indicating device



F- HULSS.

ELECTRlC INDICATING DEVICE APPLICATION FILED OC T. I9, 1920.

Patented Oct. 24, 1922.

I I I II I I I I I I I II I I II I I I I I I| I| I I I I I II I I I HI I I I I I I 20 when this battery is conneded in series with Patented Oct. 24, 1922.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. I

FRIEDRICH m, B mini, 1am BERLIN, Gm, ASSIGNOR T0 sonucmrwms ommscm'r HIT BEBCHB-ANKTEB M11116, 0] EMS- STLD'L-M 13mm, GmANY, A GERMAN CORPORATION.

I nuc'rmc mmcarme DEVICE.

Application fled October 18, 1020. Serial No. 418,181.

To all whom it may concern:

Be, it known that I, Fxmomoa Hi'inss, a citizen of the German Empire, residing at 'Halensee, near Berlin, Germany, have in- 5 vented certain new and useful Im rovements in Electric Indicating Devices, 0 which the following is a specification.

My invention refers to electric indicating devices and-more especially to a device for indicating the relative discharge conditions of a pluralit of storage batteries.

If it be esired to run submarine boats, having a plurality of electric batteries, for a certain len of time with slow speed, it will be foun expedient to connect the motors only to one of said batteries. However, in this case, there is the risk of this rticular battery being very heavily disc ar ed, 'so that there is not sufiicient charge eft,

another'bat-tery for full speed. It thus becomes n that the difl'erence in the consumption 0 current of the batteries shall not exceed a certain maximum. This can be 26 obtained by alternately connec' the mo- H tors at slow speed with the rice on hand. I

t In the drawings afixed to this cation and forming part thereof an installaii i so tion of the'kind mentioned above is shown by way of illustration. In the drawings Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the connection of the batteries, while F 2 and 3 diagram of the lmrrenbplied sai I j accordance with this invention there is 1 of the drawings, suitably employed for the above mentioned ith 2:10 a

- twobatteries a an b feed a propeller motor m. By means of a throw-over switch a and the single switches a and t, the motor 40 may be connected. to either of the indiv dual batteries as well as to'both together in series. In the position in which the switches are shown in the drawing the motor is connected to batte a and from it exclusive y whereas when the throwover switch '14 is 1n the position shown in broken lines, the motor is connected to battery b. If the motor is to be fed simultaneously by both batteries for the urpose of to increasing the volt then the t row-over switch u 18 shifted into its neutral position and switches a and t are closed. Thus at any derives the current time current may be taken for other urposes from the outer poles of the battei 'ies connected in series. Now in order to be able .to draw approximately the same amount of energy from both batteries, when both are simultaneously sub ected to stress, the load in the case of low rates of speed is alternately transferred from one battery to the other as soon as the difl'erence 1n the consumption of current of both batteries has attained the admissible degree for one battery. The extent ofthis d1 erence, as also t e particular batt from which said difierence has been deriv may then be determined by reading 05 from measuring instruments the amount of current consumed in both batteries; by compar ng the figures obtained with those resulting from previous readings, the difference in the consumption of current may be -calculated. However, this process is not only complicated, it is also very apt to give rise to errors. 7

M present invention relatesto a device whic will render it possible to indicate guickly and absolutely reliably the relative ischarge conditions of bothbatteries. This device comprises a current supply meterinfluenced by the discharge currents ofboth batteries, and which immediately indicates the difierence of the amounts of current taken from both batteries, designating at the same time the articular battery which has supdiflerence.

urpose a meter of the type illustrated in igs. 2 and 3. A counter r, disposed in a casmg'g, actuates an indenz' in such a manner asto cause it to move in one direction whensu acted to the influence of the current of site direction when acted upon by the-current of the other battery. At the same time, the index or pointer is suitabl arranged so that it will move in conj ion with the 'tion assumedb the throw-over switch 10,

of the battery. e index is provided with a scale, consisting of two parts is, k metrically disposed relatively to each oil The central or zero point common to both of these parts indicates the position of the e one battery, and in the oppo meter for the symmetrical discharge of both batteries. Each part of the scale, .comprises the maximum difference in the consumption of current admissible for both batteries.

The meter is first switched on when the batteries are uniformly charged. In that case, the index points to zero on the scale. If now current be withdrawn from battery a, the index will travel in the present instance in the counter clockwise direction. As soon as the index approaches the maximum admissible discharge difference, in the present case 100 ampere hours, the motor is switched over on to they other battery. Thereupon the index travels backwards, traverses the zero point and continues to move along the other part of the scale. lVhen the index has attained its maximum position on that scale, the motor is again connected to the first battery. The position of the index on the left hand part of the scale shows that more current has been consumed in battery a than in battery 6; its position on the right hand part of the scale, indicates that more current has been consumed in battery 6 than in battery a. The individual divisions of the scales indi cate the amount of the difference in the consumption of current. If the motor be connected with its terminals to the ends of both batteries connected in series, for the purpose of increasing the voltage, then the index stops, and indicates the batter on to which the motor is to be connected w ien it is again to be connected to the individual batteries. A ripid indication of this kind is particularly valuable in cases where a shift in the crew has been made in the meantime.

The entire meter h may be so constructed that it must be interconnected in the two supply circuits; it may, however, be so constructed as to render it suitable for interconnection in a circuit conducting the differential current of the two supply circuits, as shown by the meter 71- in Fig. 1. fhile I have shown as an example a plain indicator hand passing over a scale, my invention is not limited to the combination with that particular adjunct, since obviously any other suitable indicating means, known in the art, may be combined with my invention and operated by the meter to visibly indicate the above mentioned relative condition of the two batteries. The divisions marked on the meter depend upon the admiss ble difference of both batteries. If, for example, In the case of a battery of 100,000 ampere hours a difference in the discharge of 1% is to be allowed, then the meter must be arranged for 100 ampere hours. It thus follows that the new device may be easily constructed to suit the amount of discharge difference admissible such as will practically enter into consideration and which is very slight relatively to the total discharge.

signaling device, which will indicate either by acoustic or optical means the point when the maximum of the admissible difference has been attained. Adevice of this kind is illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 3. The index .2 when assuming either of its two extreme positions on the scale, bridges the spring contact f and the stationary contacts 0 or 0 respectively, and this closes a circuit containing an electric alarm d and a battery e.

I claim:

1. In an installation of the kind described in combination, a plurality of storage batteries and a current supply meter connected so as to be influenced by the discharge currents of said batteries and adapted to indicate directly the difference in the relative amount of current supplied by said batteries as well as the battery from. which said difference has been supplied.

2. In an installation of the kind described two storage batteries and a current supply meter connected so as to be influenced by the discharge currents of both batteries, said meter having a counter, an index adapted to be moved by said counter and two scales arranged symmetrically with relation to each other, and having their zero points 00- inciding with the posit-ion of said index corresponding to an even discharge of either bat eries.

3. In an installation of the kind described in combination, a plurality of storage batteries, a current supply meter connected so as to be influenced by the discharge currents of either of said batteries and adapted to indicate directly the difference in the relative amount of current supplied by said batteries as well as the particular battery from which such difference has been supplied, and a signalling device connected with said meter adapted to operate when the highest admissible difference in discharge is attained.

4. In an installation of the kind described two storage batteries, a current supply meter connected so as to be influenced by the discharge currents of both batteries, said meter having a counter, an index adapted to be moved by said counter and two scales arranged symmetrically with relation to each other, and having their zero points coinciding with the position of said index corresponding to an even discharge ofeither battery and a signalling device connected with said meter ada ted to operate when 'the highest ad ni$ib e difference in dis char e is attained.

5. n an installation of the character decharged by said batteries as well as the battery from which said difierence has been discharged.

6. In an installation of the character described, two storage batteries and a current supply meter connected to said batteries so as to run in one direction when one battery discharges and in the other direction when the other battery discharges, a counter o erated by said meter for re istering e amount of current discharged y either battery, said counter havin an index a scale for each battery dispose in operative relation to said index and disposed symmetrically to each other and having their zero points coincidin with the position of said index in which t e meter has registered an equal amount of current disc either-battery.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature;

FRIEDRICH HULss.

arged by 30 

